In recent years there has been a considerable growth in the popularity of trailerable cruising sailboats. These sailboats typically have shallow or retractable keels and can be trailered as easily as a power boat. However, a sailboat may not be trailered with its mast in an upright position and it usually requires at least two people to unstep a mast of a cruising sailboat in order that the same may be trailered. In addition, in order to unstep the mast of a cruising sailboat, it is necessary to disconnect the forestay of the mast and to loosen the shrouds. Of course, in order to step a mast of a cruising sailboat, it also requires two people and the forestay must be attached and the shrouds must be tuned or adjusted. The stepping and unstepping of the mast of a sailboat and the attaching and unattaching of the forestay as well as the adjustment or tuning of the shrouds of the mast is time consuming. Further, the stepping and unstepping of a conventional mast requires at least average strength on the part of the two people attempting to unstep or step a mast. Therefore, few cruising sailboats are trailered to and from the water on each day of their use, even though trailering a sailboat to and from the water substantially eliminates the necessity of hull bottom maintenance which is very time consuming each year, if the sailboat is left in the water for the entire sailing season.
In addition, sailboats of the cruising type and provided with conventional masts which may be stepped and unstepped cannot have the masts thereof readily and quickly unstepped and thereafter readily and quickly stepped as may be desired in order to pass beneath a low bridge.
Yet another problem resulting from crusing sailboats whose masts may not be readily unstepped and stepped arises in locating boat storage space at the point of use if the sailboat is not to be trailered to and from its point of use. The phenomenal growth in boating popularity has made "in the water" storage very difficult to find and premium rental must be paid for slip space if slip space can be found. Although motor boats may be stored by the "high rise storage" method where power boats are stacked in racks by forklift trucks and may be readily unstacked and launched by forklift trucks whenever desired, it is obvious that cruising sailboats with their masts stepped may not benefit from such "high rise storage".
Accordingly, a need exists for a sailboat mast construction which may be readily unstepped and stepped whenever desired in a matter of a few minutes and by only one person.
While various forms of improved mast stepping and unstepping structures as well as similar articulated joints have been heretofore designed, such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 270,358, 457,323, 477,477 and 3,827,386, these various masts stepping and unstepping structures do not provide a total solution to any of the above noted problems which are encountered by the owners of sailboats whose masts may not be readily unstepped and stepped.